


Flying Free

by Aris Merquoni (ArisTGD)



Category: The Pentagon Wars (1998)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-01-01
Updated: 2008-01-01
Packaged: 2017-10-07 01:03:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 895
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/59683
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArisTGD/pseuds/Aris%20Merquoni
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sergeant Fanning visits a newly civilian Colonel Burton on his family's homestead, and he takes her into the air.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Flying Free

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Liviapenn](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Liviapenn/gifts).



Delia Fanning couldn't help raising an eyebrow when the Colonel held the door open for her and waved her into the makeshift hangar on his uncle's farm. "That's it?"

"This is it," Colonel Burton said, following her into the converted barn. Fluorescent lights hanging from the rafters threw glare over the wings of the tiny, ancient airplane sitting in the middle of the room. He threw a switch, and the massive doors on the end swung open, and sunlight flooded through to reveal a rough dirt runway.

Delia studied him for a moment as she crossed the floor to the side of the airplane, and once again tried to reconcile the slim figure in blue jeans and a leather jacket with the buttoned-down officer who had turned her branch of the Pentagon on its head. Not that she was in uniform, herself. But Burton looked as though he'd actually left the whole uniform _thing_ behind with the cloth, and she'd seen enough ex-Army officers in civvies to spot the difference.

Maybe it was an Air Force thing.

She shook her head and turned her attention to the plane. "Sir," she said after a moment's consideration, "are you sure you have total faith in this miracle of aerodynamics to not come crashing back to earth as soon as it leaves?"

"Fanning," Burton said, exasperatedly turning to her, "You don't have to call me sir anymore."

He was smiling, but there was more than an edge of pain behind it. She ducked her head to avoid saying anything for a moment. She'd been trying not to think about Burton's forced retirement; trying not to bring it up even harder. "Sir, it's a bit hard to get out of the habit, if you get my drift," she said.

Burton chuckled, a little harshly. "Okay, sergeant," he said. He grinned and went over to his plane, patted the curving metal fondly. "Yes, I'm sure she'll stay in the air. Trust me?"

Delia took a deep breath and tugged at her jacket. "Okay, sir," she said, "I trust you."

Burton's grin grew wider as he gave her a hand up into the cockpit. She steadied herself on the wing, then gingerly stepped over the side of the fuselage and settled herself into the seat. She got her straps buckled and looked up at just the right moment to get a nice view of Burton, vaulting over the lip of the cockpit and showing off the seat of his jeans. Which was to say, he'd definitely kept in shape since retiring.

"Okay," he said, locking the cover of the cockpit down over them and doing a bunch of mysterious pilot things as Delia located all the handholds she could possibly grab. "Ready?"

"Probably not, sir," she said, bracing herself. "But let's go anyway."

He chuckled and hit the engine. Delia jumped despite herself, as much as she could while strapped in.

Down the runway was as bumpy as any country road in a car with no shocks, a series of JOLT JOLT JOLT and then one last BANG and they were pulling up and all she could see past Burton's head and out the window was blue, blue, blue. She whooped, Burton laughed, and with a stomach-sinking lurch they straightened out, flying high over fields that were like patchwork squares past their wings.

"Having fun back there?" Burton shouted over wind-noise, taking them in a lazy circle.

She fought to keep from squealing like a schoolgirl. "I think I could get used to this!"

He laughed again, then said, "Hold on to your hat--"

The plane's engines started keening again as Burton took them up, up again into the cloudless panorama of sky, and then turned them nosedown and suddenly they were _spinning._ Delia shrieked, and held white-knuckled as up was down and then down was back down again, and she couldn't stop the wild-eyed "Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" that was coming out of her lungs like a freight whistle.

"Don't that beat a roller coaster all to hell!" she finally said when she got her wind back.

"I definitely agree," Burton said, the warm burr in his voice cutting through the engine's roar.

Delia didn't even mind the bumps on the landing when they got back to the ground. She unbuckled her harness and waited for Burton to help her down, and landed a little hard, legs wobbling.

"Woah there," Burton said, putting a hand to her back to steady her. "You all right?"

"Just fine, sir, just getting used to the ground is all," she said. She looked up at his face, and caught his tentative smile, the expression of _wow, I hope that was as cool as I thought it was._ And thing of it was, it had been. Worth it, anyway, to trust her judgment over her nerves. And James Burton was cute when he smiled.

On impulse, she tilted her head back, leaned forward, and kissed him.

James started in surprise; she pressed her lips forward a little firmer before pulling back. His eyes had widened in shock, but the hopeful light in his expression hadn't dimmed. He put his hand to his mouth, briefly, and mumbled, "Well, um, if you ever... I mean, if you want another flight, just... let me know?"

Her grin welled up from inside like she was growing wings. "Yes, sir. Bet on it."


End file.
